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Half a century ago, Belgian Zoologist Bernard Heuvelmans first codified cryptozoology in his book On the Track of Unknown Animals.

The Centre for Fortean Zoology (CFZ) are still on the track, and have been since 1992. But as if chasing unknown animals wasn't enough, we are involved in education, conservation, and good old-fashioned natural history! We already have three journals, the largest cryptozoological publishing house in the world, CFZtv, and the largest cryptozoological conference in the English-speaking world, but in January 2009 someone suggested that we started a daily online magazine! The CFZ bloggo is a collaborative effort by a coalition of members, friends, and supporters of the CFZ, and covers all the subjects with which we deal, with a smattering of music, high strangeness and surreal humour to make up the mix.

It is edited by CFZ Director Jon Downes, and subbed by the lovely Lizzy Bitakara'mire (formerly Clancy), scourge of improper syntax. The daily newsblog is edited by Corinna Downes, head administratrix of the CFZ, and the indexing is done by Lee Canty and Kathy Imbriani. There is regular news from the CFZ Mystery Cat study group, and regular fortean bird news from 'The Watcher of the Skies'. Regular bloggers include Dr Karl Shuker, Dale Drinnon, Richard Muirhead and Richard Freeman.The CFZ bloggo is updated daily, and there's nothing quite like it anywhere else. Come and join us...

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Sunday, March 16, 2014

I had an emergency mission to help set up an animal rescue sanctuary in the state of Missouri and we should be working on getting it set up over the next two weeks (Which overlaps the beginning of spring and we should be done before April Fool's Day)

Dale with Yeti (We have matching coat colors)

JON: It goes without saying that if there is anything that the rest of us can do to help, please ask. We will do what we can.

It now appears that the Government is seeking another avenue through which it can appease the pro-hunt minority, by bringing back hunting by the back door via an amendment which the majority might neither understand nor gauge the significance of; but that in reality would make the Hunting Act unenforceable.

The time has come to defend the hunting ban.

You may have heard recently about possible repeals and amendments of the Hunting Act, underhand tactics and political tricks, lambs disappearing and hunting returning. You may not be entirely clear what is happening. If that is the case, please read on, because all will be explained in detail which you may not find elsewhere. Read on, and you’ll get the full picture.

Let’s begin at the top. Prime Minister David Cameron has long acknowledged his desire to overturn the ban on hunting wild mammals with dogs which came into effect with theHunting Act 2004. With the formation of the Coalition Government, the manifesto pledge to introduce a vote on repeal of the Act was changed to a vote on whether to hold a vote on repeal.

While the Government has reaffirmed its commitment to this pledge in numerous media articles in recent months, it has faced the dilemma that despite continued pressure from influential pro-hunt party supporters and funders for a return to hunting, it must know that a vote on outright repeal would fail as it is still opposed by the majority of MPs, across all parties, in addition to the backlash it would prompt from the UK public.

It now appears that the Government is seeking another avenue through which it can appease the pro-hunt minority, by bringing back hunting by the back door via an amendment which the majority might neither understand nor gauge the significance of; but that in reality would make the Hunting Act unenforceable,thereby allowing those intent on chasing and killing sentient British mammals with packs of dogs for fun to do so. The intended amendment – changing a current hunting ‘Stalking and Flushing out’ exemption allowing an animal to be flushed to guns by two dogs to be flushed now by a pack of hounds - was revealed in the answer to a recent parliamentary question, and also by the Prime Minister.

The impact of such an amendment would be, in effect, a return to the hunting of wild mammals such as foxes and stags with packs of hounds, as the changes would make the Hunting Ban almost impossible to enforce, therefore, a return to hunting by the back door.

Hunts which currently still try to hunt illegally sometimes try to use hunting exemptions as an alibi for their actions but the current restriction on no more than two dogs being used to flush a fox or stag to guns is one of the easiest to gain evidence of when breached, so makes the Hunting Act enforceable in cases where a pack of hounds is used to chase a fox or stag. Removal of this restriction would make enforcement of the Act very difficult, as hunts could merely ensure they have someone present with a gun, while an animal is needlessly chased for the hunt’s own enjoyment.

Many people may overlook the impact of this amendment if they do not know the Hunting Act in detail, or have a broad knowledge of the history of prosecutions under it. Hunts can currently claim a defence under Section 4 of the Hunting Act, if they claim “they reasonably believed the hunting was exempt”.

However, in order to do so, they should claim that they are ‘exempt hunting’, and therefore they need to comply with all the conditions the Act imposes for such ‘exemptions’, which often includes limiting the number of dogs used to two. Because illegal hunters find it difficult to hunt with two dogs, fox hunts had become more inclined to claim they were legally trail hunting, because they can then use a full pack of hounds and do not need to follow any conditions.

In such cases, however, if the hunts are caught chasing a fox, they are likely to claim it was an ‘accident’, but the court may not believe them if there is enough evidence to show that they knew the chase was happening and did nothing to stop it (most recent successful prosecutions on mounted hunts are based on this, as was the case of the Seavington huntsman successfully prosecuted by IFAW’s evidence).

This is the dilemma the illegal hunters face:

On one hand, if they use an ‘exempt hunting’ alibi they have a stronger defence because they can use the ‘reasonable belief’ part of Section 4, but then they are forced to use two hounds on most occasions.

One the other hand, if they use ‘trail hunting and accident’ alibi they can use a full pack but their defence is weaker.

So what is their solution? Find a way to use the ‘Section 4’ defence with a full pack of hounds and this is where the current amendment comes in. If the exemption for the number of dogs is removed, fox hunts will be more likely to claim a ‘Section 4’ defence, a stronger defence, because it has the ‘reasonable belief’ component to it. Put simply: more hounds will mean a better defence for illegal hunters; more hounds will mean more cruelty to British wildlife.

Illegal stag hunters would also benefit most from the proposed amendment as currently the number of dogs exemption has seriously hampered their criminal intentions. If the two-dog exemption is removed, illegal stag hunts will be very difficult to prosecute even if they hunt in the open with a pack of hounds, hence a return to stag hunting almost as if the ban did not exist. This will be extremely unpopular, as shown in a 2013 Mori poll on deer hunting where 85% of people wanted stag hunting to remain banned.

The main reason given for introducing this amendment – that foxes are preying on lambs at Welsh farms– is not valid either. Wild mammals, including foxes, do not significantly predate on lambs, and the study the government is likely to base its position on is limited in its scope and is flawed. It refers only to fox hunting in Scotland yet is being justified to introduce a sweeping change to the legislation in both England and Wales, and the amendment will also affect the hunting of other wild mammals (stags, hares, mink, etc. ), not just foxes, as the Hunting Act does not distinguish between any “wild mammal”, and effectively bans the hunting with dogs of all wild mammals (except rats and rabbits). The amendment has been sold to the public so far as only affecting foxes in Wales, but if it its only based on removing the number of dogs condition it will in fact affect most wild mammals, anywhere in England and Wales (therefore, it will affect more than 12,000 hunting events every year!).

Estimates of annual UK lamb losses range from 7% to 15% (Binns et al, 2002, Defra, 2004), though studies suggest that predators and misadventure (where lambs go missing) account for only 5% of these losses, with the actual proportion of these lost to foxes being difficult to determine and likely to be overestimated (Macdonald et al, 1997). According to Defra (2004), 95% of lamb losses are due to farm husbandry practices. Establishing whether a lamb has been killed by a fox, or died as a result of sudden bad weather or mis-mothering and been subsequently scavenged by a fox, is very difficult. Foxes may in many circumstances be blamed for killing a lamb when they simply found it dead or dying (Natural England, 2011).

Therefore, if the Government case for bringing the amendment is solely based on research by Naylor & Knott (2013), the fundamental assumptions underpinning the Government’s case are flawed, namely that fox numbers have increased since the Hunting Act came into force, that fox predation has a major impact on farmers’ incomes and that killing foxes helps to reduce fox numbers. All empirical evidence demonstrates that these assumptions are untrue.

We expect that the amendment will be brought forward under a Statutory Instrument (SI), as an amendment to Schedule 1 of the Hunting Act. This would need to be approved by both Houses of Parliament, and, as a contentious issue, we would expect it to be voted on, on the floor of both Houses rather than just in an SI Committee. This could take place in a very short space of time.

What has Corinna's column of fortean bird news got to do with Cryptozoology?Well, everything actually!In an article for the first edition of Cryptozoology Bernard Heuvelmans wrote that cryptozoology is the study of 'unexpected animals' and following on from that perfectly reasonable assertion, it seems to us that whereas the study of out-of-place birds may not have the glamour of the hunt for bigfoot or lake monsters, it is still a perfectly valid area for the Fortean zoologist to be interested in.

The hunt for British Big Cats attracts far more newspaper-column inches than any other cryptozoological subject. There are so many of them now that we feel that they should be archived by us in some way, so we are publishing a regular round-up of the stories as they come in. The worldwide mystery cat phenomenon (or group of phenomena, if we are to be more accurate) is not JUST about cryptozoology. At its most basic level it is about the relationship between our species and various species of larger cat. That is why sometimes you will read stories here that appear to have nothing to do with cryptozoology but have everything to do with human/big cat interaction. As committed Forteans, we believe that until we understand the nature of these interactions, we have no hope of understanding the truth that we are seeking.

THE GONZO WEEKLY all the gonzo news that’s fit to print Issue Sixty-Nine March 15th

This is quite simply the best magazine you will ever find that is edited by a mad bloke (and his small orange cat), and produced from a tumbledown potato shed on the outskirts of a tiny village that nobody's heard of in North Devon. The fact that it is published with Gonzo Multimedia - probably the grooviest record company in the known universe - is merely an added bonus.

WARNING: If you are using Outlook, Hotmail or Outlook Express, this issue of the magazine may come out with formatting errors. I have been mucking around with this for hours trying to fix it to no avail. If you have problems reading it, please use this online version.

NAMING THOSE RESPONSIBLE
This issue was put together by me and Captain Frunobulax the Magnificent, (who is, in case you didn't know, an insane orange kitten on the verge of adulthood) ably assisted by:

This is the nearest that you are ever going to get to a posh weekend colour supplement from the Gonzo Daily team. Each week we shall go through the best bits of the week before, and if there aren't any we shall make some up, or simply make our excuses and leave (you can tell the editor once did contract work at the News of the World can't ya?)

WHO GONZO? WHY GONZO? WHAT GONZO?

What? You don't know who Hunter Thompson is/was/might have been/will be? Without Hunter Thompson there would be no Gonzo Multimedia. It would have been completely different and that would have been an unforgivable pity.

C.J.Stone suggested that as well as explaining Gonzo to those wot don't understand, we should do a weekly quote from the great man himself. So here goes:

“The person who doesn't scatter the morning dew will not comb gray hairs.”

Social media stuff that I am really too old to understand, (my stepdaughter spent much of last Christmas trying to explain Twitter to me) but I am assuming that at least some of our readers are younger and hipper than I am.

It is simple; my name is Jon and I'm the editor of the Gonzo Multimedia daily online bloggything. Now there is a weekly magazine, once again edited by me and a small orange kitten from a dilapidated ex-potato shed in rural Devonshire, to which you subscribed by opting in on the website. I hope that you all stay to join in the fun, but if it is not to your liking it is easy to unsubscribe again. But what a long, strange trip it is gonna be...

I keep on thinking that I ought to have some sort of a mission statement in each issue, but it is more than a little difficult to do one. Basically, (if you don't mind me sounding more like a wishy washy old hippy than my haircut in the photograph above would imply) I think that books and music are immensely important. I look around and see that we are living in a world where the things that I think are important are valued less and less by society as a whole; a world where asinine gameshows and so-called reality TV (which is actually a complete oxymoron, but don't get me started) are of more importance to most people than anything of cultural or spiritual value.

I am also very disappointed by much of what the contemporary music press puts out, and I decided many years ago, that probably the only way I could read the things that I want to read, would be to publish them myself. So this is what I have been doing for much of my life. I am also naive enough to think that music and art can change the world, and as the world is in desperate need of change, I am gonna do my best to help.

MORE LIKE A MAGAZINE: First we take Manhattan
This magazine is a strange publication because although it is published in conjunction with Gonzo Multimedia, who are jolly nice people. and are a proper international multimedia organisation, it is also published by the CFZ who are an anarchic little group of people based in North Devon (although we have tendrils across the globe) who run the Centre for Fortean Zoology, the annual Weird Weekend, and a highly acclaimed non profitmaking publishing company, amongst many other things, mostly to do with animals,politics and publishing.

But we are just starting something new!

As I wrote last week, after years of meaning to get around to it, we have finally started our own record company, called - inventively - CFZ Records. This is basically an extension to what we already do with the CFZ Publishing; we produce things that we think deserve to be produced whether or not they make any money.

And this week, the first proof copy of our first EP came in the post. And boy, are we excited!

I have just been told about the North Devon Firefly Faery Fayre and Ball, which will be held on Saturday 26th July 2014. This is North Devon's first celebration of faery culture, art, crafts, and music for both children and adults, and any proceeds will go to The Small School in Hartland, North Devon, England. The event will take place on Saturday 26th July 2014 at the Anchor Inn in Hartland, where there is plenty of B & B accommodation (but book early), and food will be on sale in the evening for the ball only. There is a camping and caravan site a few yards up the road, and local shops are just next to the pub, which also has a music licence.

There will be a faery fayre through the day, including stalls and children's entertainment, and a faery ball with a range of musical acts in the evening. Things like this are important and I want to support these people in any way that I can. There is too much ugliness, rudeness, anger and general bad vibes in the world, and anything we can do to address this has got to be a good thing.

1. Art is as important as science and more important than money
2. There is life after (beyond and before) Pop Idol
3. Music can and sometimes does change the world

If you think those three ideas are stupid then you should probably give up reading this magazine now. Otherwise... enjoy

As is the rest of this magazine, this is mostly about music, and the bits of contemporary culture that I find interesting, but it also has a smattering of actual NEWS, especially if there are ethical questions that effect us all, or one of those put in authority over us does something spectacularly inane. The nearest that this section will ever come to politics is laughing at politicians.

HEART OF GOLD Neil Young has secured more than $1.5 million in Kickstarter pledges to launch PonoMusic, the singer’s new high-fidelity music store and player which promises to deliver studio-quality sound quality to audiophiles. Backed by endorsements from Sir Elton John, Bruce Springsteen and Sting, Young, 68, unveiled Pono at the SXSW music convention in Texas. Read on...

HOW MANY MORE TIMES will the Led Zeppelin folk tell us that there are no more unreleased songs, only to find them a few years later when it is time for the next set of reissues? "La La", recorded during the sessions for Led Zeppelin II, the band’s 1969 album which defined their riff-heavy sound, will be made available for the first time on a companion disc of unheard recordings when the record is re-released in June. Read on...

AND WHILST ON THE SUBJECT OF LED ZEPPELIN. Most of Jimmy Page's dreams and fantasies were probably realized sometime around 1977, (stop sniggering there Lori Maddox fans) but here's one that the legendary Led Zeppelin co-founder likely never envisioned coming to pass: On May 10th, the guitarist, producer, and songwriter will receive an honorary doctor of music degree from the prestigious Berklee College of Music. The ceremony will take place at the 7,000 seat Agganis Arena at Boston University. Read on...

NATIONAL DISTRUST. The National Trust is an iconic institution, which depends entirely on its members for its success. At the recent AGM thousands of members voted to implement badger vaccination rather than cull on National Trust land. Those who did not vote left their vote to the discretion of the chairman. Despite the obvious will of the majority of members to vaccinate over culling, the chairman used every last one of these discretionary votes (more than 2000) to vote in favour of a cull, therefore overruling the popular will of the members. Read on...

TOO COOL FOR SCHOOL Council workmen painted road markings outside a school - after failing to notice it had been knocked down more than a year ago. Highway workers in Liverpool put down markings outside the former Gateacre school, which was shut to pupils two years ago before being demolished. The council admitted its staff had made a mistake and said it was now checking that the gaffe had not been repeated outside other knocked down schools.

QUIS IPSOS CUSTODES 6 British Ex-Soldiers have been Imprisoned in India since the 18th of October 2013. These men are our brothers, sons and partners. They have risked their lives serving our country in the British Army, and now need the British Government's help to be released from an Indian Prison where they are being imprisoned unlawfully. Read on...

OH HOW THEY DANCED The MoD has been warned that it faces 'a global storm of protest' after it unveiled plans to build homes for soldiers near Stonehenge. Outraged experts claim that the houses would block the world-famous solstice sunrise at the Wiltshire monument. Army bosses want to build 4,000 homes for soldiers and their families returning from Germany on an old airfield overlooking the monument, but experts said the buildings would occupy the exact spot that the sun peeks over the horizon on the longest day of the year. Read on..

Lib Dems all shook up by being beaten in an election by the Bus Pass Elvis Party which wants brothels to give OAPs a 30% discount

David Bishop AKA Lord Biro won 67 votes in Nottingham by-election

Party also known as Elvis Loves Pets, Church of the Militant Elvis and Elvis and the Yeti Himalayan Preservation Party

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: Another new video from Auburn
Slowly but surely I am working my way through the footage that I filmed with Corinna at the Auburn show in Wolverhampton a couple of months back. This song is a real favourite of mine and was a joy to edit.

This week we posted this story and competition:

2014 is already proving to be a hugely exciting year for acoustic ensemble Auburn, who reformed in 2011 after almost a decade apart. With a new album and a major UK tour supporting the legendary Jefferson Starship as they celebrated their 40th anniversary, Auburn have been captivating audiences around the country with their unique blend of Americana, blues and roots music.

The new album, 'Nashville', features 12 newly-penned songs from singer-songwriter and Auburn lynchpin Liz Lenten, and establishes Auburn's place as a compelling force in contemporary Americana. Showcasing Liz's versatility as both a writer and vocalist, Nashville's sonic world fuses elements of blues, country and roots music, with soulful lyrics and catchy pop rhythms.

Recorded in Nashville, Tennessee with award-winning producer Thomm Jutz (Nanci Griffiths, Mary Gauthier) 'Nashville' features musicians who have played with everyone from Roy Orbison to Garth Brooks and Dolly Parton. Three tracks from the album were made available on ReverbNation prior to its release and within a few weeks had reached No.1 in the UK Americana charts and No.7 in the Global Americana charts.

Gettysburg, PA - The most anticipated music festival of 2014, the legendary RoSfest, will take place this year May 2-4, 2014, and will feature progressive rock icons Caravan, Beardfish, Collage, Clepsydra, Sound Of Contact and others! The Rites of Spring Festival, or RoSfest as it's commonly called, is an annual progressive rock festival held every spring in Gettysburg, PA. RoSfest is in its 11th year, and are thrilled to be presenting UK prog icons Caravan, who has not performed in the US in many years, along with 9 other amazing bands this year. RoSfest has always been at the forefront of bringing new and upcoming progressive rock bands to an American audience, while also bringing in bands that were at their peak during the heyday of prog rock in the 70's. This year's lineup features 10 bands over three days, with Friday night's show featuring Clepsydra (Switzerland) and Caravan (UK). Saturday's show features Elephants of Scotland (US), Sound of Contact (UK), Thank You Scientist (US), and Beardfish (Sweden). Sunday's lineup features Fright Pig (US), Red Sand (Canada), Subsignal (Germany), and Collage (Poland). All three days feature a strong lineup with a mix of different sounds and styles within progressive rock.

Says George Roldan, founder of RoSfest, “It's really an honor to be featuring a classic band like Caravan at RoSfest. They are so well known in the genre, and they have been very instrumental in developing the Canterbury sound that has become familiar to prog fans. We really are thrilled to host Caravan's first show on American soil in years. Our Sunday night headliner, Collage, is one of the most famous bands in Polish progressive rock, and indeed Polish music in general. They’ve just reunited, and this will be their biggest show in years, so we are honored that they agreed to perform at RoSfest for this special occasion. In addition to the classic bands, we also continue to bring in new rising stars of progressive rock, such as Sound of Contact, which is a project from Simon Collins, Phil Collins' son, and they bring a refreshing modern sound to the genre. This whole lineup is incredible, and we’re looking forward to bringing all of these wonderful bands to the stage!”

With a history going back to 1968, Caravan is one of a dwindling amount of bands around that merits a description as living legends. They were one of the two principal bands in the Canterbury Scene, a movement that saw bands blending elements from progressive rock and fusion with whimsical lyrics, quirky instrumental movements and a distinct English sound - but often without any major superficial likeness shared between the bands subscribed to this style. Caravan peaked commercially early on, with 1971's 'In the Land of Grey and Pink' their best-selling album. Their early 70's albums in general are all considered classics today, and while they never made much of an impact in the UK or US in these early days their stature have continued to grow following the resurgence of interest in progressive rock. Following spells of inactivity in the 1980's and 90's Caravan have been a mostly going concern since 1995, albeit with a number of line-up alterations along the way. The current incarnation of the band dates back to 2010 and consists of Pye Hastings, Geoffrey Richardson, Jan Schelhaas, Jim Leverton and Mark Walker. Twelve years have gone by since Caravan had their last triumphant return to the US at Nearfest.

While Beardfish is still regarded by many as a fairly new band on the scene they have actually been around for more than a decade already, with seven full length albums to their name. Initially renowned for their fairly eclectic take on retro-progressive rock they have developed towards a harder edged variety of that sound in later years, firmly documented on their 2012 album 'The Void'. An album they finished promoting in October 2013.

Says George Roldan, “As many will see from the bands we have signed for 2014, RoSfest is in development. There's a steadily increasing number of fine new bands that comes forth that we feel deserve the chance to play at a festival such as ours. Some established with a small following already, others are fresh entities just starting out. We feel we have an obligation to the best of those new artists to make them somewhat better known, especially when conditions for recording artists in general and new artists in particular are as challenging as they are. All of them represent the finest quality in music of course, we do owe our audience a high quality festival after all. They are just not that well known yet. We do take care to sign better known bands too. Newly reunited Clepsydra and Collage for instance, Beardfish as one of the top names among the new generation of progressive rock bands, and in Caravan we managed to sign one of the few remaining giants from the golden age. But all in all RoSfest 2014 has a somewhat higher percentage of lesser known bands than before. We hope our audience understand and support this slight alteration in approach.”

Multinational band Sound of Contact is a new player on the scene, so to speak, but with a potential that secured them a contract with prestigious label InsideOut for their first release. The instigator of this band is one Simon Collins. As a solo artist he has released three full length albums over the past decade, establishing his credentials firmly prior to venturing out into band and progressive rock circles. A vital part of his music resume and presumably more important for him than many others. Simon Collins is a vocalist and drummer both, just like his father Phil was. And Phil Collins is a musician that easily merits a description as famous. With an already established career, Simon has seen to it that he isn't merely regarded as the son of his father when now following in his footsteps. The reception given to Sound of Contact's debut album 'Dimensionaut' in 2013 emphasize that clearly, with a steadily growing number of glowing reviews following in it's wake. Sound of Contact live, for live purposes consisting of Simon Collins (vocals, drums), Bill Jenkins (keyboards, vocals), Matt Dorsey (bass, vocals), Randy McStine (guitars) and Ronen Gordon (drums).

RoSfest once again will be held at the Majestic Theater in Gettysburg. Eighty years ago, the doors of the Majestic Theater opened for the first time, welcoming audiences to the largest vaudeville and silent movie theater in south-central Pennsylvania. Built by Henry Scharf as an annex to the historic Gettysburg Hotel, the theater seated 1,200 patrons and proudly served as the cultural crossroads of commerce, college, and community.

Regular seat tickets may only be purchased on the Majestic Theater website or through the box office by calling (717) 337-8200, or in person at 25 Carlisle Street during box office hours (Sunday: 3-7:30 pm, Monday-Saturday: 12 noon-7:30 pm).

Single day passes go on sale Friday March 14th at the Majestic Theater box office for all three days and online.

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: Paul Whitrow meets Missy Jubilee
The other day I had a Facebook IM from my old friend Paul Whitrow inviting me to check out his latest project. I have known Paul for 25 years and am always happy to see what he has been up to. So I clicked on the link, and it shocked me.

At first I thought it was pornography. I am not a prude and pornography doesn't shock me, but I have never known anyone who has been involved in it, and that thought DID shock me. But then I realised that it is not pornography at all. Missy Jubilee is a performance artist occupying much the same space as Anais Nin, except in 21st Century Australia.

Missy Jubilee describes herself: "I'm Missy Jubilee and I am an artist and film maker. And I am dedicated to the erotic beauty of female sexuality & the intellectual process behind it. I am always trying to find the poetry and beauty in its erotic essence, and then translating it as art into the world of film." Her art is very intimate and very brave, and Paul's music contrasts it perfectly, and I am glad to hear from him that he is going to be working on more of her films with her.

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: Acid Mothers Temple - An ursine mystery solved and a new single

Last week I wrote how I had received the above graphic through the post and had no idea what it was or why. Dave McMann came to my rescue and wrote: "What you saw was an advert for the three day AMT and others annual festival in Japan. Would love to go one year, but it's a bit far."

Thank you Dave. That makes everything clear. And whilst on the subject of the Acid Mothers Temple: "Acid Mothers Temple & Space Paranoid's limited Live CDR "My Name Is Lucifer : Live in Kochi 2013" will be available at the show @ club Goodman on this saturday 15th March.including 4 tracks, total time 66 min.!! live recorded at Chaotic Noise Kochi on 23rd Dec. 2013. — with Futoshi Okano and 3 others."

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: Eric Burdon on Ray Charles
Classic rock legend Eric Burdon (from the bands The Animals and War) sat down to take the Rhapsody TV On the Record challenge, in which he describes one of his all-time favorite records. Here, he chats about Ray Charles' Genius + Soul = Jazz and gives us a pretty awesome Ray impression. Enjoy.

WATCH: Eric Burdon goes "On The Record" with RhapsodyTV to talk about one of his favorite records.

A 'missing' woman on holiday in Iceland managed to unwittingly join a search party looking for herself. It happened after a tourist group traveling by bus to the volcanic Eldgja canyon made a pit stop near the canyon park.

The woman in question went inside to freshen up and change her clothes at the rest stop, and when she came back "her busmates didn't recognise her". Word spread among the group of a missing passenger, and the woman didn't recognise the description of herself. A 50-person search party - including the 'missing' woman - was soon canvassing the area, and the coast guard was mobilising to deploy a search party of its own.

It wasn't until 3am that someone finally figured out that the missing woman was actually in the search party, albeit in different clothes, and the search was called off.

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: The Mighty Groundhogs on the way back In the middle of all the madness yesterday I had a telephone call from my mate Paul Whitrow, introducing me to Ken Pustelnik, one time drummer of The Groundhogs; a band of whom I am really rather fond.

He told me that deep in the Groundhog Forest something stirs, and that he and Peter Cruickshank on bass, making two thirds of the classic lineup are planning to reform and play some of the albums that were never toured at the time live for the first time.

That sounds pretty bloody groovy to me. I will be monitoring the situation so watch this space boys and girls. It is gonna be an interesting summer.

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: Save This Site SOS UK Rock Festivals

DEAN PHILLIPS SENT THIS:We couldn't do this without you

.... so thanks ..... BUT ....

We build this site through YOUR contributions and thus it is dedicated to all the lovely people who have donated their memories, documents,photos and recordings to us over the past fourteen years.

However, probably due to social media, contributions are drying up. Normally , I use this time of the year to add stuff that has come in over the past months. This year, theres nothing much to add

If you want this site to be updated and you are sitting on photos or have memories to contribute, think, if you post them on Facebook, why not just email us a copy as well ?,Then anyone can see the info at a central point, and not just those who are in the group you are contributing to.

We want to keep this site going, but it will fade away if nothing is donated by the readers .

The site is non profit making and will never accept paying adverts both as a tribute to your generosity and also because we still believe in the old hippie/digger ethos that giving something for free is a reward in itself !

There are too many of you to mention here, but we couldn't have done it without you, and for your efforts, many, many thanks .......http://www.ukrockfestivals.com/

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: The Hidden Door festival

Katherine Dilworth writes: I'm currently working towards a Festival in Edinburgh called Hidden Door. We are planning to transform 24 forgotten vaults on Market Street for 9 days only at the end of March before they are redeveloped into a glass and concrete maze!

We are all working voluntarily to make this festival happen and the response we have had from fellow creatives has been outstanding so far!

But we cannot do it alone - we need your support! Please help us by contributing however much you can afford, to support an integral arts festival that showcases Scotland's existing and emerging talent!

An independent festival from the creatives of Edinburgh, for Edinburgh.

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: The Faces/Small Faces reunion story trundles on
Ian McLagan has sketched out the plans for next year’s Faces and Small Faces reunions, suggesting that both groups could reform. Despite a recent argument about which project should take precedence, according to McLagan, “it’s looking very healthy” for a full Faces lineup in 2015.

Fans should expect “big news any day”, the keyboardist told ABC News Radio. While Rod Stewart and the Faces will probably mount a full tour, the Small Faces are apparently more likely to stage a one-off London gig. “It’s a plan,” McLagan said. I hope it all comes together. It sounds like it will this time.”

Ironically, McLagan is the one who initially denied Stewart’s reunion proposal. “Why would we fuck around with the Faces when we’ve got bigger fish to fry?” he said in December, alluding to the Small Faces upcoming 50th anniversary. “[Rod]’ll have to wait until 2016 because 2015 is the Small Faces’ year.”

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: Do you want to play guitar for Malachite?
Massively groovy North Devon band Malachite are looking for a Reggae guitarist who can play both rhythm and lead. Barbara, the singer, tells me: "We only play original songs mainly ska and reggae, mainly at festivals". Just like so many 21st Century ensembles, they redefine what is meant by a `local band'; Barbara explains: "we're in Hartland ...drummer is in Sussex lol..funny set up but it works for gigs ,but we are also looking for a local percussionist" so if you are interested, it all really depends on how far you are prepared to travel for rehearsals and gigs.

Checking them out, they are very good, and if it weren't for the fact that I can hardly stand for more than five minutes now, and that I don't have any time left in my insane schedule I would volunteer myself for the job. Check out their YouTube channel:http://www.youtube.com/MALACHITENORTHDEVON

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: The Gospel according to Bart
This week my favourite roving reporter sent me two items of interest. The first is about Jon Anderson's new band with Jean Luc Ponty, which is covered in more detail in the YES section of this week's issue. However he writes: I'll see Jon in two weeks... I'll ask about this 'strange bed-fellows' arrangement"

He also sent me this excerpt from the Marillion newsletter about the 30th anniversary of their album Fugazi...

12 March 2014 Fugazi 30th Anniversary

Fugazi was our "difficult second album". EMI expected us to produce a follow-up to Script within a year even though we were touring and promoting Script for a large portion of 1983 and were also looking for a drummer after the departure of Mick Pointer.

I recall that Fish had most of the lyrics for the album already written so the pressure was on the rest of us to come up with some music. We decided to head for Wales for inspiration with ex-Camel drummer Andy Ward. He lasted long enough to help out with the writing of Assassing and a partially aborted US tour in the summer of '83. He was followed by John Marter who only lasted long enough to play with us supporting Rush in New York in September and then we were back to Wales but this time with Jonathon Mover where we came up with some music for Incubus, She Chameleon and Punch & Judy. Mover, true to his name moved on and was replaced by Ian.

Eventually we got the album finished about 6 weeks behind schedule.

Mark

Recording at the Manor was an amazing if frustrating experience. I remember waiting all evening to record my guitar parts as they were having terrible problems syncing the two 24 track tape machines together and by the time they eventually came in from the studio at the end of the evening, I'd drunk the best part of a bottle of whiskey with one of the girls who worked there and then had to be put to bed by Fish. I remember Richard Branson sitting at the kitchen table and a giant Irish Wolfhound sat in front of the open fire.

Steve R

For me, Fugazi holds a whole host of conflicting memories.

Recording at the Manor Studios in Oxfordshire was lovely, especially as we were staying there as residential guests while the session was under way. However, my Mum was In Harefield Hospital undergoing a triple heart bypass at the time, so I was driving back and forth to keep my Dad company and see how everything was at home. Working on songs we were trying to record but hadn't finished writing was fun but an expensive use of studio time.

It was a great experience and I had a lot of fun, playing with and getting to know Ian, who had just recently joined the band.

It turned out pretty well though all things considered.

Pete

I remember meeting the guys for the first time at Rockfield studios in Wales and thinking ‘this is a dream fulfilled’ - a real band!

Then off to The Manor studios in Oxfordshire to record the Fugazi album. I particularly enjoyed taking Lightning - the studio Irish Wolfhound (very old, slow dog) - for walks.

Great atmosphere with loads of energy and a magical chemistry as a band that still exists to this day. The only slight panic I do recall was not having written the title track Fugazi, which was kind of daunting when you are spending £1000 a day. In the end it came together and I still think it's a great track.

Ian

THE WEEK THAT'S PAST: Gonzo Web Radio

There is a new episode of Strange Fruit, but first Strange Fruit presenter Neil Nixon is looking for help. There are some other exciting things afoot with another entirely new station being added to Gonzo Web Radio, and a total revamp of the radio index.

Strange Fruit, Miskin’s Radio’s home of alternative, off-the-wall and otherwise generally strange sounds is looking for a co-presenter. This is not a paid job, but would give the lucky individual the chance to present two hour shows of music generally ignored by radio, and broadcast them twice a month to be heard by Miskin Radio’s audience online and then archived on Gonzo Multimedia’s website, where their audience would devour them. Radio experience would be useful, but isn’t necessary. The ideal candidate would be able to come to our Dartford studios, be trained and begin work when ready. Alternatively, anyone capable of self-producing and Dropboxing shows will be considered. Fame and wealth are unlikely but the chance to indulge your most maverick musical tastes knows few limits in this job. In the first instance email Neil Nixon,nlnxn@aol.comto express an interest. Also check out our shows on Gonzo Multimedia’s web radio page and Miskin Radio’s own site –www.miskinradio.co.uk

STRANGE FRUIT: Episode 60 Date Published: 15th March 2014

Strange Fruit is a unique two-hour radio show exploring the world of underground, strange and generally neglected music. All shows are themed and all shows set out to give the most hardened of sound-hounds asome new delight to sample. The show is also unique in providing homework for undergraduate students on North West Kent College’s Foundation Degree in Professional Writing (who dig up many of the odd facts featured in the links between tracks). Strange Fruit presenter Neil Nixon is currently working on a book about rare albums for Gonzo Multimedia.

The show is broadcast on Miskin Radio every Sunday from 10-00-midnight.

What's been did and what's been hid
Iam growing up in public, as it were. The Gonzo Weekly has been going for very nearly a year now, and we are beginning to find our feet. I am making changes as I go along, and - no doubt - some of these changes will turn out to be mistakes. So, let me know what you think. Do they work? Do you like them? Hate them? Or don't you care either way?

Please pass this magazine around as far and wide as you can. And encourage as many people as you can to subscribe. Remember it is free, and will remain so. However, I want as many subscribers as possible to move on to the next stage of the party. There might well be cake.

Remember, I am always looking for new authors. If there is something that you feel you could add to the general melange which is the Gonzo Weekly, please email me at jon@eclipse.co.uk. The more the merrier.

Although this newsletter also goes out in a plain text version for those of you who do not trust image intensive thingys in your browser, I promise that as long as it is technically feasible (which will be for the forseeable future) the text only mailout will continue. However, I strongly advise that for you to get the best out of this rapidly evolving publication, that you really should see it in all its picture-led glory.

Please tell your friends, colleagues and family about The Gonzo Weekly, and try to persuade them to subscribe. The more subscribers we get, the bigger and better and more effective the whole thing will be.

Remember, if you want more than your weekly fix of this newsletter you can check out the Gonzo Daily, which - as its name implies - does much the same as this newsletter but every day. It also features a daily poem from Thom the World Poet, and the occasional non-Gonzo rock music rambling from yours truly, plus book and gig reviews from our highly trained staff of social malcontents. And its FREE! You cannae say fairer than that!

1. Spirits Burning & Bridget Wishart “Make Believe It Real”
This album adds a new chapter to the Spirits Burning story. The twelfth Spirits Burning CD is the first to be a double CD: Disc 1 features 11 new compositions, and disc 2 features remixes and songs that were previously available on compilations only.2. Mick Abrahams - Novox
Over the years, the legendary Mick Abrahams of Jethro Tull and Blodwyn Pig recorded a number of solo albums, steeped in the delta blues DNA that had mystically been passed down to him by Robert Johnson. These include this fantastic instrumental album from 2000, entitled “Novox” (No vox, instrumental? Geddit?) Mick is 70 now, and not in the best of health, but he still has the heart of a bluesman and the remarkable musicianship on this gem of an album pays testament to that.3. Andy Colquhoun - Pick Up The Phone America!
Andy Colquhoun is a guitarist with a peerless pedigree. He first came to the notice of the music press when in 1977 his band Warsaw Pakt recorded an album (Needle Time) that was in the shops 24 hours after the first note was recorded. After Warsaw Pakt, he joined Brian James' Tanz Der Youth, (described as the world’s first hippy punks) subsequently moved on to the band The Pink Fairies, and then a band with ex-MC5 guitarist Wayne Kramer. For the best part of thirty years he was songwriting partner and collaborator with the legendary Mick Farren; a partnership which only ended with Mick’s sad death in July 2013. In 2001 he released his first ever solo album He writes: “There comes a time in the life of every guitar player when he or she gets the chance to make a solo album. This is my attempt, and I've put as much guitar on it as possible.4. Percy Jones Ensemble - Propeller Music
Fretless electric bassist Percy Jones has carved out his place in fusion and progressive rock during his longstanding affiliation with the bands Brand X and Tunnels. Furthermore, Jones represents one of the early innovators of the electric bass despite a lack of widespread recognition. Yet, since the mid-'70s, the artist's signature sound and style to coincide with his enviable chops has at times, been overshadowed by others who reside a bit closer to the limelight. The album is a peculiar, though satisfying mix of jazz fusion and electronica, and is another one of those classic albums that slipped through the cracks at the time, which is just unfair. Great tunes, great compositions, great musicianship. What’s not to like?5. Clearlight - Impressionist Symphony
Clearlight’s “Impressionist Symphony” focuses on the artistic style of impressionism, painting and music as well with a Ravel, Satie and Debussy influence merged with Cyrille Verdeaux’s progressive music experience and linked with the French impressionist school of painting.The release celebrates the 40th anniversary of “Clearlight Symphony,” an early classic Virgin Record release, which featured Cyrille’s compositional skills and virtuoso keyboard playing, with performances by Gong family members Tim Blake, Steve Hillage, and Didier Malherbe, and others.6. Rick Wakeman - Live At The Hammersmith Odeon
Wakeman teamed up with Tim Rice to write the 1984 album, a musical adaptation of George Orwell's book of the same name. The project was a flop for a couple of reasons; critics panned it because Rice's lyrics tried to give the adaptation an upbeat ending, something the book did not have. Secondly, when Wakeman wanted to tour the production in the U.S. Orwell's estate would not give clearance. The show was performed in the U.K. though and this concert features the opening overture and scattered later in the program, "Julia" and "The Proles." The show overall is a mish-mash featuring "Sea Horses" from the Rhapsodies album and then proven crowd pleasers from King Arthur, Henry VIII and Journey. In the liner notes Wakeman says that he was at a low point in his career when this show was taped; his father had just died, he was going through a divorce and he was not happy with the line-up of his band. He doesn't single anyone out but the female vocalist here doesn't live up to the work done on the record by Chaka Khan. Still the show has its redeeming values; the arrangements are changed on the familiar stuff from the three main albums and the band tackles the difficult "Catherine of Aragon" and "Anne of Cleaves" for the first time ever live. Wakeman introduces every song, joking that then the audience will have advance notice as to when to go to the bathroom.

Most of the back issues have now been archived on a dedicated Blogger site. Please use the navigation tree on the right of the page. However, please be aware that there are still a few formatting issues, and the magazine may not look as nice in blogger as we would have liked.

If, however, you are using the MailChimp archive, (below) please be warned: Magazines from #11-41 contain the cartoon at the bottom of the stressed out guy with the computer Apparently someone has accused the public domain images site I got it from of hosting malware, and even though there was none found there by Google, the fact that I used an image from the site (perfectly legally) flagged our whole newsletter up as possibly containing malware. This should only effect people using Google Chrome, and I would strongly suggest that you click the 'proceed anyway' tab, and view the newsletter as you had originally planned...

Anthony Neil Wedgwood "Tony" Benn, PC (3 April 1925 – 14 March 2014), formerly 2nd Viscount Stansgate, was a British Labour Party politician who was a Member of Parliament (MP) for 50 years and a Cabinet Minister under Harold Wilson and James Callaghan. Benn's campaign to renounce his hereditary peerage was instrumental in the creation of the Peerage Act 1963.

In the Labour Government of 1964–1970 he served first as Postmaster General, where he oversaw the opening of the Post Office Tower, and later as a notably "technocratic" Minister of Technology. In the period when the Labour Party was in Opposition, for a year he was the Chairman of the Labour Party. In the Labour Government of 1974–1979 he returned to the Cabinet, initially as Secretary of State for Industry, before being made Secretary of State for Energy, retaining his post when James Callaghan replaced Wilson as Prime Minister. During the Labour Party's time in Opposition during the 1980s, he was seen as the party's prominent figure on the left, and the term "Bennite" has come to be used in Britain for someone of a more radical left-wing position.

Benn topped several polls as the most popular politician in Britain.He has been described as "one of the few UK politicians to have become more left-wing after holding ministerial office." After leaving Parliament, Benn became involved in the grass-roots politics of demonstrations and meetings, and was the President of the Stop the War Coalition for the last decade. He was a vegetarian from the 1970s until his death.

Prescient enough to support computerization,workers co-operatives,a United Ireland and to decommission all nuclear weapons.

His cherished Concorde now a Museum piece .His Diaries a relic from another time.

He was gone before his iconic pipe and teacup could secure discussion and debate on vital unresolved issues-

Britain's membership in the EEC,her military alliance with American Presidencies,and her moribund economy.

BRAVE BENN-to speak his truth and change his views as he grew to see things clearly.

Media rule now.Image is all.War is business.Big Benn has gone.

Thom the World Poet

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Spider McGraw aka The Orange Cat (1999-2014)

There is sorrow enough in the natural wayFrom men and women to fill our day;And when we are certain of sorrow in store,Why do we always arrange for more?Brothers and sisters, I bid you bewareOf giving your heart to a dogCAT to tear.

FORMS OF LOVE
two hands to hold
four legs and tail
fur to stroke
company that never fails
Unconditional
as love for,with,by
every Orange Cat staring down
from Cat Heaven Sky!

Thom The World Poet

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: James Ellis (1931-2014)

Perhaps most well known to many for his part inZ-Cars (1962–78), James Ellis was a Northern Irish actor and stage director with a career stretching over sixty years, and appearing in many roles in film and on TV. He died on 8th March from a stroke.

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Buren Fowler (1959-2014)

James van Buren Fowler was an American rock and roll and blues guitar player from Atlanta,Georgia. Hethe was lead guitarist for Drivin' n' Cryin' from 1988–1993, and had previously toured with R.E.M. He had suffered ill-health for two years before dying in his sleep on 8th March.

THOSE WE HAVE LOST: Dave Sampson (1941-2014)

Dave Sampson(9 January 1941 – 5 March 2014)was an Englishrock singer, born inStaffordshire, UK. He had a UKhit single in May 1960 with his backing band, The Hunters, with "Sweet Dreams".

THERE IS NOW A GONZO WEEKLY SHOP

Now, I don't know whether this is a good idea, a bad idea, or just an idea, but - as I believe you know - this magazine is put out each week on a budget of £25, and is free. It will remain free, but I would like to be able to generate some income so I can pay our contributing writers. So, 'why not flog Gonzo Weekly T Shirts?' I thought. 'Why not', I answered...

Oz Hardwick is a York-based writer, photographer, lecturer and occasional musician. As well as two well-received poetry collections, The Kind Ghosts (2004) and Carrying Fire (2006), he has published widely in international literary journals and performed throughout Europe and the US. He has also published widely on art and literary history and is a Reader in English at Leeds Trinity University College.

Oz is also a photographer and was at a couple of shows by the newly reformed Pink Fairies back in the late 1980s. He writes: "Ooh - it's a long time ago! All of the ones in front of the curtains with pronounced ripples were taken at Dunstable Queensway Hall, the other couple at The Crypt in Deptford - I attach a flyer for the Deptford gig, & maybe there's a website which will tell you what year the 9th May was a Saturday (I'm guessing '87 or '88). Both were about the time of Kill 'em and Eat 'em, and I think the Dunstable gig (from which I've attached a couple more pictures) was earlier. Sorry I can't be any more help, but the late 80s is a bit of a blur, I'm afraid."

Saturday dawns... the day of the radio interview with Clash and PIL co-founder Keith Levene, conducted by Tony Gleed of Bugbear Promotions. And I was going to video the occasion for Gonzo.

Heading from North Devon to Southwark in London was surprisingly trouble-free, and I checked in to my hotel within 5 minutes of the time I'd earlier anticipated. Thanks to an earlier look at Google Streetview, I knew the layout of the area despite never having been there before, and humped the tripod and video gear down the busy road to the rendezvous point - a cafe just south of London Bridge - and soon met up with the guys.

I wasn't sporting a red carnation for identification purposes, but I was wearing a Hawkwind t-shirt, which turned out to be just as effective. After some general chat we moseyed on up to the radio studio, tucked away in a back yard behind an electronic gate.

While Keith and Tony discussed things like CD fade points with Dan, the radio engineer, I did some general setting up and soon it was Air Time. The interview went well, interspersed with music and the answering of tweets - the show was billed partly as a "tweet-fest" and as often happens there wasn't enough time to cram everything in.

Afterwards, we adjourned to a pub's sitting-out area just off the busy main road, and I tried getting some stock photos for Gonzo of Keith with red London buses passing by in the background. With somewhat mixed results, I felt!

After a few pints, I said my goodbyes to the guys and carted the equipment back up the road to my hotel - and dived straight in to the shower. Mission Accomplished.

Hello, I'm a Wally, Wally Dean and although you don't know it yet YOU are probably all Wallies too.

Let me start by explaining my name; Dean I got from my parents. Mostly my old man, in an extreme act of good luck he read Jack Kerouac's On the Road just before I was born. I say lucky because if it wasn't for Mr K's beautiful anti hero Dean Moriarty, I would have been called Woody after Woody Guthrie. I must add that I don't wish to offend any other Woodys reading this, but I've worked as a coppicer and a charcoal burner and I reckon the name Woody may have left me less inclined to become a woodsman.

The Wally part of my name came from Helen the Hat, a legendary New-Age traveller and a truly wonderful woman in her own right. It was she, who one wet and windy Samhain night, gave me the honour of being the caretaker of Wally Hope's ashbox. Wally had been a hero of mine, the founder of the Stonehenge Free Peoples Festival and an acid prophet. He was in the words of Sir Walter Wally (Sir Wally Raleigh) a "psychedelic anarchist" .

What was there not to like ?

Wally Hope was born Alexander Grahame Russell, in 1947, to a wealthy family from the Windsor area. His father was an international salesman for a chemical company and his mother was Danish. When he was 12 his father died. Strangely his father had made arrangements, with the BBC presenter John Snagge,in case something happened to him while abroad,. This has always made me wonder if there was a british intelligence connection or maybe this is the first of the strange factors which surround his life.

His mother soon remarried to a man whose criminal past set warning bells ringing for the executives of the will, so Alex was made sole beneficiary of the family estate. This naturally upset his mother who moved back to her native Denmark, leaving her son living in South Lodge, a family home in Stoke Poges, near Windsor.

Young Alex soon dropped out of Art College, claiming that they tried to make him do everything their way. He adopted the name Phil, which means love, and became a Mutant, He began to hang out at Eel Pie Island and attending the "happenings" at the Roundhouse in Chalk Farm. These legendary parties must have made a profound impression on him as he started to regard LSD as a sacrament, a holy potion for communication with the divine. The Pretty Things were regular visitors, and the lodge was always a hive of activity. His mother then returned and although he said he'd been having a wonderful time, she called the police and he was arrested for possession of marijuana. He was sentenced to 2 years, first in Ashford then on the notorious A wing at Wormwood Scrubs.

On his release he set out to explore the world, visiting Canada, where he stayed on reserves and became fascinated with tipis. He also visited France, Denmark, Ibiza, Israel, Kenya, Morocco, Greece and Cyprus. Cyprus, he loved and he wanted to buy land there, but the war flared up. Wally joined the Cypriot army briefly but left after losing some friends in battle.

His time in Britain was spent immersing himself into the alternative lifestyle and psychedelic freedom which free festivals allowed him. He was at the Glastonbury Fair in 1971. I remember reading in Andy Roberts brilliant book Albion Dreaming how a young chaplain from Swindon had had a very strange time after taking LSD. It is not clear if this was a voluntary trip, but he ended up spending quite a while in the Release bad trip refuge. Then watching Nic Roeg's film of the fair who do I spot in the audience of the Sunday morning mass, but our friend Wally. If anyone could talk a young priest with a yearning for divine contact into a dose of LSD, then he was the man.

Over the next two years I will be inviting you to join me on a journey of discovery. I will be recounting major incidences which happened forty years ago, from 1974 to Wallys untimely death in september 1975. I will be inviting you to join me in a detective story, and to form your own opinions on his death.

Was it misadventure, suicide or perhaps murder?

I will be supplying you with all I know, with contributions from Wally (his words), Penny Rimbaud, CJ Stone, Nigel Ayers and others. I welcome any contact, as I write my book, and together we will lay his memory to rest.

All photographs in this hub are from the book, Shades of Other Lives by Gerry Atkinson, and are the copyright of Gerry Atkinson. If you would like to buy a copy of the book please contact Gerry via her website here:http://www.gerryatkinson.com/

What follows is the introduction to the book written by me, and reprinted with the kind permission of the photographer and author of the book, Gerry Atkinson.

Click on the pictures to see them full-sized.

Time present and time pastAre both perhaps present in time future,And time future contained in time past.

It’s ten past six. You can see it by the clock on the wall. It must be winter because these pictures are taken after dark, when the lights are on. The curtains are half-drawn. There’s a yucca plant in the centre of the window poised like Isadora Duncan in some dramatic pose, all formality and gesture. The wallpaper consists of garish blue leaves interspersed with yellow flowers. The clock has pink flowers around the edge. There’s a black and white print on the wall. It’s hard to make out what it is. At first glance it looks like a map: an outline of the coast of America, perhaps, or a picture of Atlantis. I’d like it to be Atlantis. On closer examination, however, it seems to be a cartoon, with some words scrawled down the side.

We’re looking into someone’s room. It’s an invitation to look, an invitation to imagine. We are imagining ourselves into someone else’s life. What can we see? Is there a story here, behind this window? What kind of a life is going on? The picture is very still, very quiet. It’s a still-life behind open curtains. At other times, perhaps, people are moving back and forth through this room. Things are happening. There is the bustle of life. Perhaps the roar of a vacuum cleaner being run through the room. Perhaps the sound of the radio being played next door. Noises coming from the kitchen. The sounds of cooking in progress. Conversations going on, the clink of glasses, and the occasional bursts of laughter like waves thrown up on the shore. Not now though. Now everything is still.

They say that the eyes are the windows of the soul. Perhaps the windows are the eyes of the house. We are seeing into the soul of the house, into the what the house feels like when everything is still.

As readers of my inky fingered scribblings, here and elsewhere, will know, I am very much a Beatles fan. Even more so, I am an obsessive buyer, reader and collector of books about the Fab Four.

And something that never ceases to surprise me is that, for a band whose major league career only lasted for about six years, half a century ago, there are still things that authors can write about them, and still new information to be unearthed.

I have always felt rather sorry for Alistair Taylor. He was Brian Epstein's right hand man, later General manager for NEMS, later still General Manager for Apple, only to be ignominiously sacked by Allen Klein in his purge of 1969. He seems to have been a really nice, if unassuming, and slightly ineffectual guy who was overtaken by events. This is the second of his books that I have read, the first of which - many years ago - told The Beatles history in the form of letters written to and from an imaginary fan called Michelle.

To be honest, that first book did nobody any favours, particularly not him. It portrayed him as a rather pathetic figure who - many years after the event - was still sulking about what had happened to him. He had been chewed up, and spat out by the music business, and he is hardly the first or the last to have had that happen to him

Even I have. At various times during my chequered career I have been treated ridiculously unfairly by some ill mannered lout with too much power in his hands. But guess what? You get over it. You grow out if it, and you get on with your life.

With this book, it seems that Taylor has. It is much better written, and much more confident (although whether this is down to him or his ghostwriter I would not like to speculate). It tells some fascinating vignettes, particularly about the early days of Apple, an early sixties paternity suit against Lennon, and the early days with Paul McCartney at his Scottish farm. Taylor was obviously very fond of Jane Asher and hated Linda McCartney's guts, which perhaps gives some sort of an insight into one of the reasons for his spectacular fall.

But even now, I have the sneaking suspicion that the account is slightly more self serving than it should have been, and only tells one side of the story. However he is dead now, so we shall probably never know. Look on Amazon. You can probably pick it up for a ridiculously low price, and it is a solid, if mildly unsettling read.

HAWKWIND NEWS(The Masters of the Universe do seem to have a steady stream of interesting stories featuring them, their various friends and relations, and alumni). Each week Graham Inglis keeps us up to date with the latest news from the Hawkverse..

Motorhead's first-ever rock cruise - the MotörBoat - is set to depart from Miami, Florida in September. Lemmy says: "This will be everything you've come to expect from a night out with us, except even louder, with more great bands and no way of escaping! If you thought waves could rock a boat, you've got another thing coming with this lovely little outing!"
Friends of Lemmy and his band, such as Megadeth and Anthrax are participating in the four day cruise, a kind of sea-faring mobile festival.
Still looking ahead to the autumn, The Hawklords band has announced some dates for October, so far in Liverpool, Glasgow and Worcester, and also London in November - at the 100 Club in the rather famous Oxford Street.
Something rather more than a tribute band, Hawklords comprises mostly ex-members of Hawkwind but still write and perform new material. The current line-up is Harvey Bainbridge, Jerry Richards, Adrian Shaw, and Ron Tree - with the only non-Hawk being the drummer, Dave Pearce.

I completely screwed this column up last week, by forgetting to put a link at the bottom to the rest of the feature. So here it is again, with many apologies.

Selling England by the Note

Tribute band The Musical Box brought their wares to the Regency Ballroom in San Francisco February 21, and 22 2014. The first night they recreated the 1973 Genesis tour that supported Selling England by the Pound (SEBTP).

On the second night they performed the 1972 tour for the prior Genesis release, Foxtrot.

The performances were striking in their accuracy, and transported this viewer and those in the audience to a time long ago when to many of us, Genesis owned the English progressive rock mantle. The experience of seeing this band is something better than tribute. They actually recreate these shows down to the set design, including slides, costumes, and props, and very faithfully perform the live music itself, with the same interpretation the band employed during the shows from the era.

Having thus far only seen The Musical Box perform the 1974 masterwork The Lamb Lies Down on Broadway, it was a rare treat to see these two prior tours. For me personally, the SEBTP album and tour represent the best, most realized work in their early days. Between the touching opening of “Dancing With the Moonlit Knight” to the majestic “Firth of Fifth” and melodic refrains of “The Cinema Show” this is where the band really hit it’s stride. The Musical Box capture the live experience deftly, and hearing the work in it’s live format, complete with visuals, and Peter’s stories, explain what all the fuss was way back in those days. It was even grand to see them wind their way through “The Battle of Epping Forest” usually dismissed by the actual members of Genesis as a bit of a mess.

Hey Jon how's it goin dude? Been working flat out on new album it's trend into a progressive metal affair with tracks ranging from 13 min epics to classic 3 minute rockers ... It's sounding good man !!! I am sticking that Rodney Matthews thing we did as a bonus too ... He's in Las Vegas at min with one if the Asia guys .. Hope you're good bud

Take it easy

Paul May

He actually IS called Jon Pertwee, and he runs a shop selling pop culture memorabilia with a special emphasis on Dr Who related stuff. He is an old mate of mine, and from now on will be doing a regular column in this magazine. Hooray!He also appears on BBC Radio Devon on Wednesdays at 10pm if you are in the area

There was a strange hush over the box in the corner. It was Saturday morning and the on-screen announcer blandly smiled and said, “Now on Westward TV, we have Space 1999, and this week the Alphans get a new, very exciting member”.

At that time I was unfamiliar with the word "member" and suspected it was something to do with football. This was the start of season two of Gerry Anderson’s series. Sadly, it had been taken over by one name, Fred Freberger; the very same man who had stamped on the last season of Star Trek and finished it off, was now running my second all time favourite show!? (The first was, obviously Dr Who). Anywho, Fred, as I know him - and it stops me typing out his surname - took the show in a different direction. Gone was the show that lead by science, it now had a wide and weird gallery of deadly alien baddies chewing at the Alphan landscape! The show introduced "Maya"- a crinkle-eye-browed alien who could, for one hour, change into any other living thing.

I know it’s amazing, and by the camera zooming into the centre of her eye we, the viewer, got to experience the metamorphosis as it as explained.. she was a metamorph from the planet Psycon. So shouldn’t she be a Psycho?

Anyway, the stories took a turn from silly and – eh - to silly and good grief what’s on the other channel? They did produce some great SF hokum and the ideas, when watched today, were a light year away from the po-faced SF attempts of today.

I do, sadly, miss it.

THE YES CIRCULAR - TIME AND A WORD

The Court Circular tells interested readers about the comings and goings of members of The Royal Family. However, readers of this periodical seem interested in the comings and goings of Yes and of various alumni of this magnificent and long-standing band. Give the people what they want, I say

The worldwide Freecycle Network is made up of many individual groups across the globe. It's a grassroots movement of people who are giving (and getting) stuff for free in their own towns. Freecycle groups match people who have things they want to get rid of with people who can use them. Our goal is to keep usable items out of landfills. By using what we already have on this earth, we reduce consumerism, manufacture fewer goods, and lessen the impact on the earth. Another benefit of using Freecycle is that it encourages us to get rid of junk that we no longer need and promote community involvement in the process.

In Victorian times every well-bred Gentleman had a 'Cabinet of Curiosities'; a collection of peculiar odds and sods, usually housed in a finely made cabinet with a glass door. These could include anything from Natural History specimens to historical artefacts. There has always been something of the Victorian amateur naturalist about me, and I have a houseful of arcane objects; some completely worthless, others decidedly not, but all precious to me for the memories they hold.

But people send me lots of pictures of interesting, and, may I say, peculiar things. But once again this week it is over to my lovely wife...

First out of the starting gate during this Cheltenham Festival week comes fromcurious.com and concerns Peter Frampton's guitar:

"Peter Frampton became famous in 1976 for his live album Frampton Comes Alive!, partly because he appears to make his guitar speak. The guitar Frampton used on that seminal album--and pictured on the cover--was a modified black 1954 Gibson Les Paul. Originally given to him by an audience member when his guitar was feeding back during a gig, Frampton refused to perform without it thereafter. Until 1980, that is, when the guitar was destroyed in a tragic cargo plane crash in Venezuela along with all of his band's gear. Or was it? Some how the guitar was rescued from the fiery remains and sold unknowingly to a guitarist on the Caribbean island of Curacao. When the guitar--scarred and slightly burned--was shown to an island guitar dealer in 2010, he immediately recognized it from the album cover, and began working to reunite it with Frampton."Read on ...

Second out of the starting gate is this Ebay sale:For £5,000 you can purchase this.

Looking down, the description screamed out at me: “:::WOW WOW WOW::: If you are reading this you know how rare this is!!” (yes, two totally unnecessary and incorrect double exclamation marks, no less). Well … erm … actually no. I was perusing this to see what it was all about, man. But to be honest, dude, it was the photograph that caught my attention and basically, I really could not have put it better myself.And that sentiment leads me on quite nicely to what I could dub 'a refusal at first fence':

And, believe me, I really did not want to stain these pages with this name again, but I came across this, watched the video and found myself wanting to commit a serious crime with something sharp and shiny. But I am not going to say anything further about this obnoxious little sack of cells – I would rather discuss the antics of microscopic bacteria squirming around on a Petri dish to be honest - but if you want to watch this video help yourself.

The description reads: “The Beatles: A pair of barber's chairs as featured in the Dezo Hoffman photographs of the group in Liverpool, 25th March 1963,US-made, swivel-base, chrome-plated frame with vinyl-covered upholstery, side lever for height adjustment, folding foot-rest, one lacking head-rest”

In the footnotes it explains that: “The Beatles spent the 25th March being photographed in different locations around Liverpool, including Horne Brothers' famous barbershop in Lord Street, the Cavern, and at Paul's house in Forthlin Road.”

Now this could read that the famous barbershop was in Lord Street, the Cavern and at Paul’s house. Well, you can get hairdressers to come to your house, so why not bring the whole shop as well?

But I digress.

For £7,000 you can install these three chairs into your abode (perhaps along with those ever-so-desirable urinals from the other week). But pick up only I am afraid. From Liverpool – where else?

Devilish DirgesAre there Satanic messages lurking in the stack of vinyls in your possession? Do you have devilish communications within the grooves as they spin around, albeit widdershins?

According to VH1+Music, “Rock ‘n’ roll originally had a reputation as “the devil’s music,” but these folks took it a little too literally! Since the late ’60s, rumors have run rampant that famous bands are hiding secret Satanic messages in their music, played backward so it can sneak into our subconscious mind unnoticed!”

Well yes, I knew that, but I had not realised that there were quite so many …

“From classic groups like the Beatlesand Led Zeppelin, through to the metal boom of the ’80s and even to today, the stories are endless! Sometimes it’s clearly unintentional, and occasionally musicians are just having a bit of fun at the expense of their fans. But then sometimes, the words are a little tooclear…It’s spooky!

Is there some truth to these mysterious messages, or do some people just have way too much free time on their hands. Read on, give a listen, and decide for yourself!”

Well, folks, I am not going to get in the spirit here and attempt to see (hear) if any of mine possess such things within their glossy, black grooves. This is because, apart from the fact that they are not particularly accessible, it would also take me a month of Sundays to complete such an exercise.

There are nine Henrys, purported to be the world’s first cloned cartoon character. They live in a strange lo-fi domestic surrealist world peopled by talking rock buns and elephants on wobbly stilts.

They mooch around in their minimalist universe suffering from an existential crisis with some genetically modified humour thrown in. I think Peter McAdam is one of the funniest people around, and I cannot recommend his book The Nine Henrys highly enough. Check it out at Amazon.

Each issue we shall be running a series of Henrybits that are not found in his book about the nine cloned cartoon characters who inhabit a surreal world nearly as insane as mine...

The Weird Weekend is the largest yearly gathering of mystery animal investigators in the English-speaking world. Now in its fifteenth year, the convention attracts speakers and visitors from all over the world and showcases the findings of investigators into strange phenomena.

Cryptozoologists, parapsychologists, ufologists, and folklorists are descending on Woolfardisworthy Community Centre to share their findings and insights. Unlike other events, the Weird Weekend will also include workshops giving tips to budding paranormal investigators, and even a programme of special events for children. The Weird Weekend is the only fortean conference in the world that is truly a family event, although those veterans of previous events should be reassured that it is still as anarchically silly as ever!

The event is raising money for the Centre for Fortean Zoology, the world’s only full time, professional cryptozoological organisation. The profit from food and beverages goes to a selection of village charities, mostly working with children.

Originally from Serbia, Dušan has established himself as an accomplished, articulate guitarist in Barcelona, Spain. This album was recorded mostly live with just bassist Bernat Hernández and drummer Marko Djordjević, and there is no doubt that all three are consummate musicians, but to be honest I don’t really ‘get’ most of this album. They are being experimental and trying to extend the boundaries of jazz and prog but for the most part I felt that it often sounded as if they didn’t know where they were going. That in itself isn’t generally an issue in improvisational music as long as they find their path in the end, but for most of the time that just

isn’t the case here. It is a wonderfully presented album with a fold-out digipak and interesting notes but for the first nine songs this became an abrasive hard edged album that I was listening to because I had to, not because I wanted to.

So, the last song on the album “If You See Me Again” was a complete shock to me as it is totally different, in every aspect, to what had gone before. Here was something that was constructed around an acoustic guitar with beautiful fretless bass that just took me in and held me close. If the whole album had featured material like this then I know that I would be raving about it, but as it is then it isn’t one to which I will often be returning.

FATE If Not For The Devil (AVENUE OF ALLIES)

Danish Melodic Hard Rockers Fate started way back in 1984, and managed to secure a record deal with EMI only a few months after they started rehearsing and recording. Over the past 30 years they have released seven albums and toured all over the world as a headlining act as well as support act, sharing the stage with bands like TNT, Pretty Maids, Mr. Big, Saga, Marillion, Cinderella and Yngwie Malmsteen. The current line-up of the band got together in 2011, when they produced ‘Ghosts From The Past’, which was only their second album since 1990. Lets hope that they keep with their current workrate as opposed to what had gone before, as this combines the melodic and catchy elements from their AOR and Melodic Rock days with the more powerful and energetic Hard Rock and Melodic Metal side of the band.

This is an album packed full of great vocals, catchy riffs and hooks, combined with strong guitars and fluid keyboards. This is similar to fellow Danes Royal Hunt in some ways, but with more balls and metallic feel while never losing the AOR and melody. It will be interesting to catch these guys live as I have a feeling that the metallic element may get a little heavier when in concert, but as this stands this is a fine album and one that has already been a regular visitor to my player and I am sure that trend will continue. Just one powerful melodic metal number after another, with great lead vocals and superb harmonies.www.avenue-of-allies.com

IL TEMPIO DELLE CLESSIDRE Alienatura (BLACK WIDOW)

This is the second album by Il Tempio Delle Clessidre, following on from their debut in 2010. Since then they have gained a new singer, but I haven’t heard the previous album so can’t comment as to what impact he has had to the sound. What I do know, is that I am going to have to go back and search out the debut as yet again this is a superb release from Black Widow. At just under an hour long, this brings together orchestration and harmony in a way this definitely reminiscent of the early Seventies Italian Prog Scene, along with early Genesis, but somehow brought up to date with some driving guitar although the mellotron is never too far away. As well as the main lead male vocal, their keyboard player Eliza also has a fine voice which allows the band to totally change the scene when they wish to.

The album commences with the sound of wind and gentle acoustic guitar and percussion before moving into a much more Oriental feel, which is actually at musical odds with what follows but somehow sets the scene very nicely indeed. ‘Alienatura’ is in itself a word that the band have invented themselves to describe the intersection of the words alien and nature. This is very much a complete piece of work, again hearkening back to the early Seventies, where the album art is very much part of the complete picture. Here Nature is depicted ripping a curtain and invading the homes and villages while the lyrics tell how we often forget our bond with nature.

So, a complete piece of work, and even though it is hard for the non-Italian speaker to understand the full concept without notes, there is so much going on that this is a sheer delight from start to end. If you enjoy classic prog, whatever the form or language, then this is something that you ought to seek out.www.blackwidow.it

KICK Memoirs (ESCAPE MUSIC)

Brothers Chris and Mikey Jones have played together in various incarnations since the early 80’s, when they were still at school. Chris took up lead guitar and Mikey the bass and vocals. They created Kick in 1998 when they joined forces with singer Nick Workman (now with Vega) and between then and 2004 they released three well-received albums. Nothing has been heard from Kick since then, but that is about to change with ‘Memoirs’, which was originally planned to be a solo album from Mikey. He and Chris decided to release it under the Kick name, even though Nick was too busy to get involved and instead Mikey provided all the vocals The result is an album that makes one think that the last 25 years or just haven’t taken place as what we have here is a

melodic hard rock album that belongs firmly in the mid-Eighties. Heavily influenced by classic Leppard, with touches of bands like Dokken, this is an eighties bad hair day all over again.

Mind you, there will be some that say that this should have stayed there as while here is nothing inherently awful about this, there is nothing wonderful about it either. It is one of those albums that while it is playing it brings a smile to the face of the listener, but as soon as it is finished it is instantly forgotten and there is little that makes one to put it on again. It is never anything more than okay at best, but it will be interesting to see if this gets the complete band going again and hitting the road. www.kickuk.com and www.escape-music.com

A SHORT INTRODUCTION TO FINNTROLL

by Corinna

From Helsinki in Finland, Finntroll is a folk metal band that combines elements of black metal and folk metal. According to band members Vreth and Skrymer, they took their name from an old Finnish legend where Swedish priests coming to Finland had an encounter with a wild-looking man who killed most of their party. The survivors came back bearing the tale of the Finn-Troll, and the band’s lyrics deal mainly with legends and tales revolving around the fictional Troll-King "Rivfader" and the trolls fighting against the Christians who entered their lands and spread their beliefs.

They are fun; check them out and be entertained. And what is more, as you can see from the picture below, they are real cutie pies ….

THE BEST LAID PLANS...
Fridays are always hectic as I am on deadline for this issue of the magazine, but today has been completely overshadowed by the death or my former deputy editor.

Rebecca Lang wrote: "Spider was a real fixture at the CFZ - Centre for Fortean Zoology and Jon's constant companion as he wrote and edited numerous magazines and books at his computer. Many people love cats but cats only love some people (as cat owners/servants well know!), and that cat really loved Jon, and was always perching on his knee or very close by. There will certainly be a little hole where that gorgeous ginger cat once lingered." For the last eighteen months he has been living in Staffordshire with my step-daughter (the vet) and son-in-law, and so there are two households grieving this day. He was Shoshannah's cat before (and after) he was mine, and so the final words should be hers: "Have an awesome time in the Heaviside Layer. You were my little dude. Love forever and always".

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